Dear US citizens who want to move to Canada because of the election,
Recently your country has elected Donald Trump to be your president for the next four years. This concerns a great deal of us up here in Canada (and conversely there are some up here that think it’s a great idea). I’m sure it concerns many of you too. In fact I know it as it is hard to escape this reality. The blogosphere, Facebook, Reddit, and even the coffee room is abuzz with this. #Notmypresident is a thing now. People are talking about impeachment before Trump has served a day in office. I get it, people are upset. However I have a few talking points I would like to convey to you at present.
First off, Canada is not a consolation prize, it is a privilege to live here and one that is very difficult to achieve. Just because you don’t like the outcome of your election doesn’t mean we want you here. Quite frankly, we don’t have room. I mean if we even take half of the people who voted for Clinton then we would double our population. But to be honest, we don’t really want you here. We like being your neighbours, but we don’t really want you to move into our house when your left hand is upset with your right hand.
Second, I think you are needed in the USA. Honestly. I really do. Someone has to undo the damage your Democratic Party has done to its base. What they did to Bernie and his supporters is beyond the pale. Actively working against one candidate and for another when they were supposed to be impartial, gaslighting Bernie’s supporters when they complained, impugning their integrity after Wikileaks proved you worked against them, telling them you could win the election without them and you were better off without them. Give your head a shake. You need to make up with these people and then you need to come up with a way to join together. Otherwise what you are looking at in your home is going to become a very familiar story.
Third, you need to get over the delusion that things were that much better under Obama. Obama also has been bombing the shit out of brown people, more so than Bush ever did. He gave you a shitty healthcare option that only gave the health insurance companies more power when he could have pushed for single payer when the democrats owned the Presidency, the House and the Senate. He never did close Guantanamo nor did he even stop the torture that was happening there. Then there was the incident where that man literally went to Flint, Michigan and drank poisonous water and declared it safe. Sure, harm was very unlikely to come to him from drinking such a little amount however is sure as fuck was and still is, to this day and beyond, to all the residents of Flint whom are still there being forced to deal with what I would describe as Hell. If you think I’m being facetious about Flint, think again. If you were the mother of a small child in Flint and are without means, your options are to knowingly poison your children and let them die a slow death or to deny them water and let them die a fast death. The icing on this Hell Cake is when the guy who is supposed to be on your side, Obama, the President of the people, comes to Flint, and you get your hopes up that he’s going to fix this mess but then he not only doesn’t but he almost literally stabs you in the back instead. So Trump might be a lot of things but to date I don’t think he’s ever actually perpetuated the poisoning of an entire community.
Fourth, and finally (not because I couldn’t go on, but because this is getting too long to retain the reader’s interest) you have one of the biggest privileges known to man in this word, that being having citizenship in the most powerful country in the world. With that citizenship you can actually get involved in the democratic process and be the change you want to see. Bernie supporters, this goes double for you. You need to double down and get involved in the party you were so motivated to elect Bernie to just a few months ago. Bernie always said he couldn’t do this alone, that he needed people like him to be elected in all the different offices aside him for him to do the things he wanted to do. This remains true today. And it is now, the “quiet” periods of politics where these shifts really happen. If you want the revolution that Bernie offered then now is the time to go out and make it happen! It certainly won’t happen if you run away to a different country.
bleatmop
Mystro
The Arbourist
Dead Wild Roses 
19 comments
November 29, 2016 at 4:39 am
john zande
In Obama’s defence, he did try to close Gitmo. Republican’s (and many Dems, state and federal) refused to allow the prisoners on US soil, to face the US judicial system.
You’re right, though, about their healthcare. They seem to be proud of getting nose cancer instead of lung cancer. So much for their “Christian Nation” claims.
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November 29, 2016 at 5:08 am
roughseasinthemed
‘man’?
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November 29, 2016 at 7:01 am
robert browning
roughseas- read it as ‘mankind’ and don’t be a butt. John Z- Obama “tried” many things but all halfheartedly as he remained true to his career long Wall St. funders. His political capital started strong enough to use his pulpit to affect real progress.
Canadian society is still a notch above the U.S. but it was two notches better fifteen years ago: corporate media shapes public attitudes( CBC used to be better than the BBC- now I ignore both ) so Canada’s economic survival will see you comply more and more with the greedy capitalists who totally control the U.S. Change will come to the U.S. only after a serious economic crash and a long revolution- I’m looking to take my two cents out of the economy here and am looking to Italy or Greece where there is spirit and one can wear tee shirts and flip flops every day.
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November 29, 2016 at 7:21 am
makagutu
Interesting letter
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November 29, 2016 at 1:03 pm
Carmen
Well, Robert – Bleatmop could have said ‘humans’ or ‘people’ and then no one would have been accused of being a ‘butt’. :)
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November 29, 2016 at 1:47 pm
Godless Cranium
Interesting post.
“First off, Canada is not a consolation prize, it is a privilege to live here and one that is very difficult to achieve.”
Agree with all of that first paragraph. It seems pretty cowardly to jump ship because your side lost.
“Actively working against one candidate and for another when they were supposed to be impartial, gaslighting Bernie’s supporters when they complained, impugning their integrity after Wikileaks proved you worked against them, telling them you could win the election without them and you were better off without them.”
Nailed it there as well.
“Obama also has been bombing the shit out of brown people, more so than Bush ever did. ”
Not sure why it matters what skin color they have. They’re people and America is illegally bombing them. That should be enough. No need to frame it in a racist manner.
“He gave you a shitty healthcare option that only gave the health insurance companies more power when he could have pushed for single payer when the democrats owned the Presidency, the House and the Senate.”
True, but he did something. That’s more than can be said for every other President. I think you have to give him a smidgen of respect for doing that at least.
“He never did close Guantanamo nor did he even stop the torture that was happening there.”
Amen. And he also expanded drone strikes.
Overall a very solid post in my humble opinion. Can’t argue with too much there.
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November 29, 2016 at 7:09 pm
robert browning
yep that’s better.
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November 30, 2016 at 1:13 pm
bleatmop
Fair criticism. I will endeavour to be more mindful in my writing.
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November 30, 2016 at 1:19 pm
bleatmop
Well, if you are looking for a serious economic collapse in the US all you have to do is look at the taxes. Unless I am mistaken, the last time taxes on the very wealthy have ever been this low there was sometime around 1928. Coincidently, that was also the last time the Republicans controlled the House, Senate, and Presidency at the same time as well.
In unrelated news, I hear that it is supposed to be another record dry winter here in Alberta, related to global warming. I know this spring many farmers could not get a crop to grow because of how dry the land was. It’s almost like we are becoming a dustbowl.
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November 30, 2016 at 1:25 pm
bleatmop
“Not sure why it matters what skin color they have. They’re people and America is illegally bombing them. That should be enough. No need to frame it in a racist manner.”
I would argue the bombings themselves are a part of a racist foreign policy and that is why the colour of their skin matters. The expanded drone strikes are a big part of Obama’s bombings.
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November 30, 2016 at 1:27 pm
Godless Cranium
“I would argue the bombings themselves are a part of a racist foreign policy and that is why the colour of their skin matters.”
Have any evidence for that assertion?
“The expanded drone strikes are a big part of Obama’s bombings.”
You mean the guy with brown skin?
See why identity politics doesn’t work? It’s judging people based on the color of their skin – the very thing its proponents say they’re against.
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November 30, 2016 at 1:34 pm
bleatmop
“You mean the guy with brown skin?”
Racism is not about individual acts against individual people. Racism is about institutions acting against classes of people. That Obama is black has no bearing on the fact that his foreign and domestic policy systemically has adverse effects upon people of colour.
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November 30, 2016 at 1:41 pm
Godless Cranium
““You mean the guy with brown skin?”
Racism is not about individual acts against individual people.”
Actually, it generally is.
“Racism is about institutions acting against classes of people.”
It can be but then you have the job of proving that’s the case since you seem to be making that claim.
Emotional appeals will not work. You don’t just get to say that America bombs people because they’re all racist and that’s what motivates their foreign policy without evidence. You will need a lot to prove such a claim, since it’s a wild accusation to make.
“That Obama is black has no bearing on the fact that his foreign and domestic policy systemically has adverse effects upon people of colour.”
Again, you have made a number of claims here that are unsubstantiated.
If you think bombings in the Middle East are about race, then you must prove it.
For my money, I think it has more to do with oil, politics and money.
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November 30, 2016 at 2:00 pm
bleatmop
Wow.
Ok, lets dissect this a little bit.
1. I’ve made no emotional claims. You however have accused me of making emotional claims.
2. I’ve defined racism in the classical sense. You’ve rejected the definition that I clarified for you and continue to argue against me using the colloquial definition that you prefer. I’m not going to argue against the words you are putting in my mouth.
3. You continue to demand proof of my claim of a racist US foreign policy. This however cannot be done until we can at least agree upon the definition of racism. Otherwise the conversation will be pointless.
4. You probably haven’t even done the slightest bit of your own research into my claim. Not even a simple google search. Yet you expect me to educate you on everything. I’m not going to do all your research for you. This is because I don’t believe you would even consider it if I spent the next two hours writing a long essay for you. I will however get you started with a couple links.
http://www.politicalresearch.org/2003/03/01/raceing-abroad-exploring-racism-inand-u-s-foreign-policy/#sthash.KNCHeQHh.dpbs
https://lmgtfy.com/?q=US+racist+foreign+policy
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November 30, 2016 at 2:07 pm
Godless Cranium
“I’ve made no emotional claims. ”
Other than America bases it’s foreign policy on what color skin people have.
“I’ve defined racism in the classical sense. ”
You mean in the made up sense. You didn’t actually use the definition. You asserted only systemic racism is racism.
“I’m not going to argue against the words you are putting in my mouth.”
You’re not going to argue because you know you pulled it out of your ass. Any dictionary will show that.
“You continue to demand proof of my claim of a racist US foreign policy. This however cannot be done until we can at least agree upon the definition of racism.”
Go to any dictionary and there you will find it.
“You probably haven’t even done the slightest bit of your own research into my claim. ”
You’d be surprised. But it’s not my job to prove your claims. That’s your job.
“Yet you expect me to educate you on everything.”
No. I expect you to show evidence for your claims.
“This is because I don’t believe you would even consider it if I spent the next two hours writing a long essay for you. ”
Since you don’t know me at all, you thinking this is completely unfounded.
But no surprise there, since that seems to be how you operate.
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November 30, 2016 at 2:09 pm
Godless Cranium
Oh, and of course the link is to a social justice blog. LMAO!
Jesus Christ. LOL.
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November 30, 2016 at 2:12 pm
bleatmop
Have fun celebrating your imaginary victory.
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November 30, 2016 at 2:20 pm
Godless Cranium
Hahaha. Cheers!
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November 30, 2016 at 11:53 pm
The Arbourist
@GC
Hi GC.
The argumentation I’ve seen so far in the thread leaves me to believe that a certain amount of background knowledge is required to properly appreciate the topic being discussed.
This paper discusses system racism and classism in the United States. A quote from the abstract. Read the whole paper here, it is most informative.
“This paper argues that the United States is systemically a highly classist and racist society, that systemic classism and racism are intimately interrelated phenomena, and that reforming this situation requires a mass movement of working class people of all ethnicities for social and racial justice for all.”
Institutional Racism in the United States – “The roots of institutional racism are hidden in the social, economic, and political systems. This article describes some of the ways that these systems develop and maintain institutional racism and suggests possible means for preventing and eliminating it.”
How Capitalism Underdeveloped Black America –
“However, though individual African Americans have been able to overcome some impediments to opportunities, structural racism and white privilege continue to result in significant disparities and inequalities, exacerbated by the periodic economic downturns of the last 15 years.
By 2012, Black median household income had fallen to 58.4 percent of white median household income, compared to 66.3 percent in 2000. In 2013, the median white family had net assets of $142,000 as compared to $11,000 for the median Black family. Correspondingly, though the poverty rate among African Americans fell from 41.8 percent in 1963 to 22.5 percent in 2000, by 2014 it has risen to 27.2 percent. Studies continue to demonstrate a persistent gap in socioeconomic status between Blacks and whites.
Contributing to these disparities is the fact that because of non-discrimination policies and unionization, Blacks are more likely to hold jobs in the pubic sector, They therefore suffer disproportionately from the decline in the public sector brought about by the universal downsizing of government (though the private sector has improved since the 2008 recession). In addition, real estate foreclosures rates are three times higher in Black and Latino neighbourhoods, where finacial institutions profited from extending subprime loans disproportionately, that in white neighbourhoods.
-Page 13/14 from the introduction.
I can go on. This information is not particularly difficult to access and again if one is to have a serious opinion on racism, and other structural features of society it would behoove you to find out what it’s all about.
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